Method for wireless communication and apparatus therefor

Abstract

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a method, a computer readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The method may be performed by a mobile device. In some configurations, a mobile device registers a first network access to a first public land mobile network (PLMN). After registering with the first network access, the mobile device determines, based on the first information, whether a second network access of the PLMN or a standalone Non-Public Network (SNPN) is allowed to register with the mobile device. In response to determining that the second network access is allowed, the mobile device selects the second network access based on the first information and registers with the second network access. The second network access may be a network access of the first PLMN, or may be a network access or SNPN of a second PLMN different from the first PLMN.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates generally to communication systems, and more particularly, to techniques involving methods and apparatus for user equipment (UE) assistance information for dual access / steering functionality. Background Art

[0002] The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.

[0003] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services, such as telephone, video, data, messaging, and broadcasting. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple access technologies that can support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple-access technologies that can support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources. Examples of these multiple access technologies include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, and time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

[0004] These multiple access technologies are applicable to various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables different wireless devices to communicate at the municipal, national, regional and even global levels. An example telecommunication standard is 5G new radio (new radio, NR). 5G NR is part of the continuous mobile broadband evolution released by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) to meet new requirements associated with latency, reliability, security, scalability (for example, with the Internet of things (IoT)) and other requirements. Some aspects of 5G NR can be based on the 4G long term evolution (long term evolution, LTE) standard. Other examples of telecommunication standards can be 5G Advanced, beyond 5G, pre-6G, 6G and so on. Technologies related to 5G Advanced, beyond 5G, pre-6G, 6G can be built based on LTE or 5G NR. 5G NR technology still needs further improvement. These improvements can also be applied to other multiple access technologies and telecommunication standards that adopt these technologies. Summary of the invention

[0005] A simplified summary of one or more aspects is presented below to provide a basic understanding of these aspects. This summary is not a comprehensive overview of all intended aspects, and is neither intended to identify key or important elements of all aspects, nor to delineate the scope of any or all aspects. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form as a prelude to a more detailed description that is presented later.

[0006] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The method may be performed by a mobile device. In certain configurations, the mobile device registers to a first network access of a first public land mobile network (PLMN). After registering to the first network access, the mobile device determines whether a second network access of the PLMN or a standalone non-public network (SNPN) is allowed to be registered by the user device based on first information. In response to determining that the second network access is allowed, the mobile device selects the second network access based on the first information and registers to the second network access.

[0007] In some embodiments, the second network access may be a network access of the first PLMN, or may be a network access or a SNPN of a second PLMN different from the first PLMN.

[0008] The method and device for wireless communication of the present invention utilize auxiliary information to achieve the beneficial effect of better dual 3GPP access for mobile devices.

[0009] To accomplish the foregoing and related ends, the features included in one or more aspects and specifically pointed out in the claims are fully described below. The following description and the accompanying drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative features of the one or more aspects. However, these features are indicative of several of the various ways of employing the principles of the various aspects, and this description is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication system and an access network.

[0011] Figure 2 is a block diagram illustrating a base station in an access network communicating with a UE.

[0012] Figure 3 An example logical architecture of a distributed radio access network is shown.

[0013] Figure 4 An example physical architecture of a distributed radio access network is shown.

[0014] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a DL-centric time slot.

[0015] Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of a time slot centered on the UL.

[0016] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a mobile device using dual 3GPP access.

[0017] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the first information.

[0018] Fig. 9 is a flow chart showing a method (process) for wireless communication of a mobile device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] The embodiments described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings are intended to be descriptions of various configurations and are not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein can be practiced. The embodiments include specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of the various concepts. However, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts can be practiced without these specific details. In some examples, known structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid blurring these concepts.

[0020] Several aspects of telecommunication systems will now be described with reference to various devices and methods. These devices and methods will be described in the following embodiments and in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (hereinafter collectively referred to as "elements"). These components can be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether these components are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0021] A component, any portion of a component, or any combination of components may be implemented by way of example as a "processing system" including one or more processors. Examples of processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, graphics processing units (GPUs), central processing units (CPUs), application processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, systems on a chip (SoCs), baseband processors, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gated logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform various functions described throughout the present invention. One or more processors in a processing system may execute software. Software shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, sets of instructions, code, code segments, program code, programs, subroutines, software components, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, execution threads, processes, and functions, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise.

[0022] Therefore, in one or more aspects, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on a computer-readable medium or encoded as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media. The storage medium may be any available medium accessed by a computer. By way of example but not limitation, these computer-readable media may include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, and combinations of the above-mentioned computer-readable media types, or any other medium for storing computer executable code in the form of instructions or data structures accessed by a computer.

[0023] Figure 1 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a wireless communication system and access network 100. The wireless communication system (also referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) includes a base station 102, a UE 104, an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) 160, and another core network 190 (e.g., a 5G core (5GC)). The base station 102 may include a macrocell (a high-power cellular base station) and / or a small cell (a low-power cellular base station). A macrocell includes a base station. A small cell includes a femtocell, a picocell, and a microcell.

[0024] The base stations 102 configured for 4G (collectively referred to as the evolved universal mobile telecommunications system terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN)) are interfaced with the core network 160 via a backhaul link 132 (e.g., an S1 interface). The base stations 102 configured for 5G NR (collectively referred to as the Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN)) are interfaced with the core network 190 via a backhaul link 184. The base stations 102 may perform one or more of the following functions, among other functions: user data delivery, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, radio access network (RAN) sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), user and device tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and alert messaging. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via EPC 160 or core network 190) via a backhaul link 134 (e.g., an X2 interface). The backhaul link 134 may be wired or wireless.

[0025] Base station 102 can communicate wirelessly with UE 104. Each of base stations 102 can provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. There can be overlapping geographic coverage areas 110. For example, a small cell 102' can have a coverage area 110' that overlaps with the coverage area 110 of one or more macro base stations 102. A network that includes both small cells and macro cells can be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network can also include a home evolved node B (HeNB), where the HeNB can provide services to a restricted group called a closed subscriber group (CSG). The communication link 120 between base station 102 and UE 104 can include an uplink (UL) (also referred to as a reverse link) transmission from UE 104 to base station 102 and / or a downlink (DL) (also referred to as a forward link) transmission from base station 102 to UE 104. The communication link 120 may use multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technology, which includes spatial multiplexing, beamforming and / or transmit diversity. The communication link may be via one or more carriers. The base station 102 / UE 104 may use a spectrum of up to 7 MHz bandwidth per carrier (e.g., 5, 10, 15, 20, 100, 400 MHz, etc.), where each carrier is allocated in a total of up to Yx MHz carrier aggregation (x component carriers) for transmission in each direction. The carriers may be adjacent to each other or not. The allocation of carriers for DL ​​and UL may be asymmetric (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated for DL ​​than for UL). The component carrier may include a primary component carrier and one or more secondary component carriers. The primary component carrier may be referred to as a primary cell (PCell) and the secondary component carrier may be referred to as a secondary cell (SCell).

[0026] Certain UEs 104 may communicate with each other using a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 158. The D2D communication link 158 may use DL / UL WWAN spectrum. The D2D communication link 158 may use one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH). D2D communications may be communicated via various wireless D2D communication systems, such as FlashLinQ, WiMedia, Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wi-Fi based on IEEE 802.11 standards, LTE, or NR.

[0027] The wireless communication system may further include a Wi-Fi access point (AP) 150, wherein the Wi-Fi AP 150 communicates with a Wi-Fi station (STA) 152 in the 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum via a communication link 154. When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the STA 152 / AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) to determine whether the channel is available before communicating.

[0028] The small cell 102' may operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in unlicensed spectrum, the small cell 102' may employ NR and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum used by the Wi-Fi AP 150. The small cell 102' employing NR in the unlicensed spectrum may improve coverage of the access network and / or increase capacity of the access network.

[0029] The base station 102, whether a small cell or a large cell (e.g., a macro base station), may include an eNB, a next generation Node B (gNodeB, gNB) 180, or another type of base station. Some base stations, for example, gNB 180, may operate conventional sub-6 GHz frequency bands, millimeter wave (mmW) frequencies, and / or near mmW frequencies to communicate with UE 104. When gNB 180 operates at mmW or near mmW frequencies, gNB 180 may be referred to as a mmW base station. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is part of the Radio Frequency (RF) in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and a wavelength between 1 mm and 10 mm. Radio waves in this band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near mmW may extend down to 3 GHz frequencies with a wavelength of 100 mm. The super high frequency (SHF) band ranges from 3 GHz to 30 GHz, also known as centimeter waves. Communications using mmW / near mmW RF bands (eg, 3 GHz to 300 GHz) have extremely high path loss and short coverage. Beamforming 182 may be used between mmW base stations 180 and UEs 104 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and small coverage.

[0030] The base station 180 may transmit beamformed signals to the UE 104 in one or more transmit directions 108a. The UE 104 may receive beamformed signals from the base station 180 in one or more receive directions 108b. The base station 106 may perform beamformed signal transmission with the UE 104 in one or more beam directions (108c, 108c'). The UE 104 may also transmit beamformed signals to the base station 180 in one or more transmit directions. The base station 180 may receive beamformed signals from the UE 104 in one or more receive directions. The base station 180 / UE 104 may perform beam training to determine the best receive and transmit directions for each base station 180 / UE 104. The transmit and receive directions of the base station 180 may be the same or different. The transmit and receive directions of the UE 104 may be the same or different.

[0031] The EPC 160 may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, other MMEs 164, a serving gateway 166, an MBMS gateway 168, a broadcast multicast service center (BM-SC) 170, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway 172. The MME 162 may communicate with a home subscriber server (HSS) 174. The MME 162 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the EPC 160. Typically, the MME 162 provides bearer and connection management. All user Internet protocol (IP) packets are delivered through the serving gateway 166, which itself is connected to the PDN gateway 172. The PDN gateway 172 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. The PDN gateway 172 and the BM-SC 170 are connected to the IP service 176. The IP services 176 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), a packet-switching streaming service (PSS), and / or other IP services. The BM-SC 170 may provide functionality for MBMS user service provision and delivery. The BM-SC 170 may serve as an entry point for content provider MBMS transmissions, may be used to authorize and initiate MBMS bearer services in a public land mobile network (PLMN), and may be used to schedule MBMS transmissions. The MBMS gateway 168 may be used to allocate MBMS services to base stations 102 of broadcast-specific services belonging to a multicast broadcast single frequency network (MBSFN) area, and may be responsible for session management (start / stop) and collecting payment information related to evolved MBMS (eMBMS).

[0032] The core network 190 may include an access and mobility management function (AMF) 192, other AMFs 193, a location management function (LMF) 198, a session management function (SMF) 194, and a user plane function (UPF) 195. The AMF 192 may communicate with the Unified Data Management (UDM) 196. The AMF 192 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the core network 190. Typically, the SMF 194 provides QoS flow and session management. All user Internet protocol (IP) data packets are passed through the UPF 195. The UPF 195 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. The UPF 195 is connected to the IP service 197. The IP service 197 may include the Internet, the intranet, the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), the PS streaming service, and / or other IP services.

[0033] The base station may also be referred to as a gNB, a Node B (NB), an eNB, an AP, a base transceiver station, a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver function, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), a transmit reception point (TRP), or other suitable terms. The base station 102 provides an access point to the EPC 160 and the core network 190 for the UE 104. Examples of the UE 104 include a cellular phone, a smart phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system, a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player (e.g., an MP3 player), a camera, a game console, a tablet computer, a smart device, a wearable device, a car, an electric meter, a gas pump, a large or small kitchen appliance, a healthcare device, an implant, a sensor / actuator, a display, or any other similarly functional device. Some UEs 104 may also be referred to as IoT devices (e.g., parking meters, gas pumps, ovens, cars, heart monitors, and the like). UE 104 may also be referred to as a station, a mobile station, a user station, a mobile unit, a user unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communication device, a remote device, a mobile user station, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, a user agent, a mobile user, a user, or other suitable terminology.

[0034] Although the present invention may refer to 5G New Radio (NR), the present invention may be applicable to other similar fields, such as LTE, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) or other wireless / radio access technologies.

[0035] Figure 22 is a block diagram of a base station 210 communicating with a UE 250 in an access network. In the DL, IP packets from the core network 160 or the core network 190 may be provided to the controller / processor 275. The controller / processor 275 implements layer 3 and layer 2 functions. Layer 3 includes a radio resource control (RRC) layer, and layer 2 includes a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium access control (MAC) layer. The controller / processor 275 provides RRC layer functions, PDCP layer functions, RLC layer functions, and MAC layer functions, wherein the RRC layer functions are associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) broadcasting, RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-radio access technology (RAT) mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; the PDCP layer functions are associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; the RLC layer functions are associated with delivery of upper layer protocol data units (PDUs), error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; the MAC layer functions are associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, MAC on transport blocks (TBs), and the like. Multiplexing of SDUs, demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority processing, and logical channel prioritization are associated.

[0036] The transmit (TX) processor 216 and the receive (RX) processor 270 implement layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, including the physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on the transmission channel, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of the transmission channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping on the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. The TX processor 216 processes the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase-shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK), M-phase-shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols can then be divided into parallel streams. Each stream can then be mapped to an OFDM subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., a pilot) in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. The channel estimate from the channel estimator 274 can be used to determine the coding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimate can be derived from a reference signal and / or channel state feedback sent by the UE 250. Each spatial stream can then be provided to a different antenna 220 via a transmitter 218TX in each transmitter and receiver 218. Each transmitter 218TX can modulate an RF carrier using a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0037] In the UE 250, each receiver 254RX (the transceiver 254 includes a receiver 254RX and a transmitter 254TX) receives a signal through a corresponding antenna 252. Each receiver 254RX recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to the RX processor 256. The TX processor 268 and the RX processor 256 implement layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. The RX processor 256 performs spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for the UE 250. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 250, the multiple spatial streams can be combined into a single OFDM symbol stream through the RX processor 256. The RX processor 256 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal includes individual OFDM symbol streams for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols and reference signals on each subcarrier are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point sent by the base station 210. The soft decision is based on the channel estimate calculated by the channel estimator 258. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally sent on the physical channel by base station 210. The data and control signals are then provided to controller / processor 259 which performs layer 3 and layer 2 functions.

[0038] The controller / processor 259 may be associated with a memory 260 that stores program codes and data. The memory 260 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 259 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the EPC 160 or the core network 190. The controller / processor 259 is also responsible for error detection using an ACK and / or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0039] Similar to the functional description related to the DL transmission of the base station 210, the controller / processor 259 provides RRC layer functions, PDCP layer functions, RLC layer functions and MAC layer functions, wherein the RRC layer functions are associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; the PDCP layer functions are associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); the RLC layer functions are associated with the delivery of upper layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs, re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; the MAC layer functions are associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, MAC SDU multiplexing on TBs, demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority processing, and logical channel priority sorting.

[0040] The TX processor 268 may use the channel estimate derived from the reference signal or feedback sent by the channel estimator 258 from the base station 210 to select the appropriate coding and modulation schemes and facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the TX processor 268 may be provided to different antennas 252 via respective transmitters 254TX. Each transmitter 254TX may modulate an RF carrier using a corresponding spatial stream for transmission. Processing UL transmissions in the base station 210 is in a manner similar to the receiver function in the UE 250 to which it is connected. The receiver 218RX in each transmitter and receiver 218 receives a signal through a corresponding antenna 220. Each receiver 218RX recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to the RX processor 270.

[0041] The controller / processor 275 may be associated with a memory 276 that stores program codes and data. The memory 276 may be referred to as a computer readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 275 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 250. The IP packets from the controller / processor 275 may be provided to the core network 160 or the core network 190. The controller / processor 275 is also responsible for error detection using an ACK and / or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0042] NR refers to a radio configured to operate according to a new air interface (e.g., in addition to an OFDMA-based air interface) or a fixed transport layer (e.g., in addition to IP). NR may use OFDM with a cyclic prefix (CP) in both UL and DL, and may include support for half-duplex operation using time division duplexing (TDD). NR may include missions for enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) services for wide bandwidths (e.g., more than 80 MHz), millimeter wave (mmW) for high carrier frequencies (e.g., 60 GHz), massive MTC (mMTC) for non-backward compatible machine type communication (MTC) technologies, and / or for ultra-reliable low latency communication (URLLC) services.

[0043] A single component carrier bandwidth of 100 MHz can be supported. In one example, an NR RB can span 12 subcarriers with a subcarrier bandwidth of 60 kHz in 0.25 ms duration or a subcarrier bandwidth of 30 kHz in 0.5 ms duration (similarly, 50 MHz BW for 15KHz SCS in 1 ms duration). Each radio frame can include 10 subframes (10, 20, 40, or 80 NR time slots) with a length of 10 ms. Each time slot can indicate the link direction (e.g., DL or UL) used for data transmission, and the link direction of each time slot can be switched dynamically. Each time slot can include DL / UL data and DL / UL control data. About Figure 5 and Figure 6 The UL and DL time slots for NR may be described in more detail below.

[0044] The NR RAN may include a central unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). A NR base station (e.g., gNB, 5G Node B, Node B, transmission reception point (TRP), AP) may correspond to one or more base stations. An NR cell may be configured as an access cell (ACell) or a data only cell (DCell). For example, a RAN (e.g., a central unit or a distributed unit) may configure a cell. A DCell may be a cell for carrier aggregation or dual connectivity and may not be used for initial access, cell selection / reselection, or switching. In some cases, the Dcell may not send a synchronization signal (SS). In some cases, the DCell may send an SS. The NR BS may send a DL signal to the UE to indicate the cell type. Based on the cell type instruction, the UE may communicate with the NR BS. For example, the UE may determine the NR base station based on the indicated cell type to consider for cell selection, access, switching, and / or measurement.

[0045] Figure 3An example logical architecture of a distributed RAN 300 is shown according to various aspects of the present invention. A 5G access node (AN) 306 may include an access node controller (ANC) 302. The ANC may be a central unit (CU) of the distributed RAN 300. The backhaul interface to the next generation core network (NG-CN) 304 may terminate at the ANC. The backhaul interface to the adjacent next generation access node (NG-AN) 310 may terminate at the ANC. The ANC may include one or more TRPs 308 (also referred to as base stations, NR base stations, node Bs, 5G node Bs, APs, or some other terms). As described above, TRPs may be used interchangeably with "cells".

[0046] The TRP 308 may be a distributed unit (DU). The TRP may be connected to one ANC (ANC 302) or more than one ANC (not shown). For example, for RAN sharing, radio as a service (RaaS), and service specific ANC deployments, the TRP may be connected to more than one ANC. The TRP may include one or more antenna ports. The TRP may be configured to provide services to the UE independently (e.g., dynamically selected) or jointly (e.g., joint transmission).

[0047] The local architecture of the distributed RAN 300 can be used to illustrate the fronthaul definition. The architecture can be defined to support fronthaul solutions across different deployment types. For example, the architecture can be based on transport network capabilities (e.g., bandwidth, latency, and / or jitter). The architecture can share features and / or components with LTE. According to various aspects, the NG-AN 310 can support dual connectivity with NR. The NG-AN can share a shared fronthaul for LTE and NR.

[0048] The architecture may enable collaboration between TRPs 308. For example, collaboration may be pre-set within a TRP and / or across TRPs via ANC 302. According to various aspects, an inter-TRP interface may not be required / existent.

[0049] According to various aspects, dynamic configuration of separate logical functions can be within the distributed RAN 300 architecture. PDCP, RLC, MAC protocols can be adaptively placed in ANC or TRP.

[0050] Figure 4An example physical architecture of a distributed RAN 400 is shown according to various aspects of the present invention. A centralized core network unit (C-CU) 402 can host core network functions. The C-CU can be deployed in a centralized manner. C-CU functions can be offloaded (e.g., to advanced wireless services (AWS)) in an effort to handle peak capacity. A centralized RAN unit (C-RU) 404 can host one or more ANC functions. Optionally, the C-RU can host core network functions locally. The C-RU can be deployed in a distributed manner. The C-RU can be closer to the edge of the network. The DU 406 can host one or more TRPs. The DU can be located at the edge of the network with RF functions.

[0051] Figure 5 5 is a schematic diagram 500 showing an example of a DL-centric time slot. The DL-centric time slot may include a control portion 502. The control portion 502 may be present at the initial or beginning portion of the DL-centric time slot. The control portion 502 may include various scheduling information and / or control information corresponding to various portions of the DL-centric time slot. In some configurations, the control portion 502 may be a PDCCH, such as Figure 5 As shown in , the DL-centric time slot may also include a DL data portion 504. The DL data portion 504 may sometimes be referred to as the payload of the DL-centric time slot. The DL data portion 504 may include communication resources for transmitting DL data from a scheduling entity (e.g., a UE or a BS) to a subordinate entity (e.g., a UE). In some configurations, the DL data portion 504 may be a PDSCH.

[0052] The DL-centric time slot may also include a common UL portion 506. The common UL portion 506 may sometimes be referred to as a UL burst, a shared UL burst, and / or various other suitable terms. The common UL portion 506 may include feedback information corresponding to various other portions of the DL-centric time slot. For example, the common UL portion 506 may include feedback information corresponding to the control portion 502. Non-limiting examples of feedback information may include ACK signals, NACK signals, HARQ indicators, and / or various other suitable types of information. The common UL portion 506 may include additional or alternative information, such as information about a random access channel (RACH) process, a scheduling request (SR), and various other suitable types of information.

[0053] like Figure 5 As shown, the end of the DL data portion 504 can be separated in time from the beginning of the common UL portion 506. This time interval may sometimes be referred to as a gap, a guard period, a guard interval, and / or various other suitable terms. The interval provides time for switching from DL communication (e.g., receiving operation of a subordinate entity (e.g., UE)) to UL communication (e.g., transmission of a subordinate entity (e.g., UE)). Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the foregoing is merely an example of a DL-centric time slot, and that alternative structures with similar features may exist without departing from the various aspects described herein.

[0054] Figure 6 600 is a diagram illustrating an example of a UL-centric timeslot. The UL-centric timeslot may include a control portion 602. The control portion 602 may be present at the initial or beginning portion of the UL-centric timeslot. Figure 6 The control portion 602 in the embodiment may be similar to the above reference Figure 5 The control portion 502 described above. The UL-centric time slot may also include a UL data portion 604. The UL data portion 604 may sometimes be referred to as the payload of the UL-centric time slot. The UL portion refers to the communication resources used to transmit UL data from a subordinate entity (e.g., a UE) to a scheduling entity (e.g., a UE or a BS). In some configurations, the control portion 602 may be a PDCCH.

[0055] like Figure 6 As shown, the end of the control portion 602 can be separated in time from the beginning of the UL data portion 604. This time interval may sometimes be referred to as a gap, a guard period, a guard interval, and / or various other suitable terms. The interval provides time for switching from DL communication (e.g., a receiving operation of a scheduling entity) to UL communication (e.g., a transmission of a scheduling entity). The UL-centric timeslot may also include a common UL portion 606. Figure 6 The common UL portion 606 in the above Figure 5 The common UL portion 506 described herein. The common UL portion 606 may additionally or alternatively include information about CQI, SRS, and various other suitable types of information. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the foregoing is merely an example of a UL-centric time slot, and that alternative structures with similar features may exist without departing from the various aspects described herein.

[0056] In some cases, two or more subordinate entities (e.g., UE) can communicate with each other using sidelink signals. Practical applications of such sidelink communications may include public safety, proximity services, UE-to-network relays, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, Internet of Everything (IoE) communications, IoT communications, mission-critical meshes, and / or various other suitable applications. Typically, a sidelink signal refers to a signal transmitted from one subordinate entity (e.g., UE 1) to another subordinate entity (e.g., UE 2) without the need for relaying communications through a scheduling entity (e.g., UE or BS), even if the scheduling entity can be used for scheduling or control purposes. In some examples, a licensed spectrum can be used to transmit a sidelink signal (different from a wireless local area network that typically uses a licensed spectrum).

[0057] A PLMN is a combination of wireless communication services provided by a specific operator. In some configurations, dual access / steer services can be used in a single PLMN, which can consist of a terrestrial network (TN) and a non-terrestrial network (NTN), where the NTN (e.g., satellite access) is used to extend the capacity / throughput of the TN, and vice versa. In some examples, a single PLMN can allow temporary dual radio access technology (RAT) coverage (e.g., when the UE is on a train, cruise ship, or airplane, or at a layover). Other examples of a single PLMN can include new radio (NR) and long term evolution (LTE) (e.g., if / when multi-radio dual connectivity (e.g., both geosynchronous orbit (GEO) and 5G are turned on) is not available). On the other hand, to provide local dual network connectivity, such as in stadiums, campuses, enterprises or factories, dual access / bootstrap services can also be used in a dual PLMN system, or in a system containing a PLMN and a standalone non-public network (SNPN), where the local SNPN / PLMN#2RAT can be used for additional PLMN#1 capacity (e.g., temporary or on-demand), and vice versa. Other examples of dual PLMNs may include TN and satellite 3GPP access, or dual satellite access (e.g., cooperation between PLMN#1 and a satellite mobile network operator (SAT MNO)) or cooperation between two SAT MNOs.

[0058] Currently, Access Traffic Steering, Switching, and Splitting (ATSSS) technology allows traffic to be managed across different types of networks, including cellular networks, Wi-Fi, and fixed broadband. In ATSSS technology, a 3GPP access and at least one integrated non-3GPP access are required to support ASSSS. However, in some configurations, non-3GPP access (or multiple non-3GPP accesses) are not ideal for improving capacity, coverage, reliability, and Quality of Experience (QoE), for example, in stadiums with SNPN or local PLMN deployments, or in cases where 3GPP TN is combined with 3GPP NTN access.

[0059] Other existing solutions, such as dual connectivity (DC) and carrier aggregation (CA), also have their own limitations. For example, in the scenarios of dual PLMN (PLMN and SNPN) and single PLMN (TN and NTN), SNPN and PLMN NTN may belong to different management domains than the primary PLMN. In this case, DC or CA requires sharing RAN arrangements between PLMNs or between PLMN and SNPN, which is often complex and has security risks. In addition, DC or CA is cumbersome to deploy in cross-infrastructure vendor deployments. Ultimately, in the scenarios of dual PLMN (PLMN and SNPN) and single PLMN (TN and NTN), there is currently no viable alternative to aggregate / steer services between 3GPP accesses to achieve home operator control.

[0060] Figure 7 7 is a schematic diagram showing a mobile device using dual 3GPP access. Figure 7 As shown, the mobile device 710 can be a UE, a mobile station, a dual access / steering device, or a similar device, which uses dual 3GPP access (e.g., a first 3GPP access 720 and a second 3GPP access 730) to provide additional 5GS tools under the control / policy of a mobile network operator (MNO) to improve the utilization, capacity, coverage, reliability, and QoE of access / network resources. Specifically, in some configurations, the mobile device 710 is configured to support dual access / steering services to enable dual 3GPP access to the same network (e.g., PLMN) or different networks (e.g., dual PLMN). Dual 3GPP access can provide flexible user plane traffic aggregation, steering, and switching at the 3GPP layer.

[0061] like Figure 7As shown, the mobile device 710 can use dual 3GPP access (e.g., first 3GPP access 720 and second 3GPP access 730) under MNO control / policy to provide additional 5GS tools / functionality to improve utilization, capacity, coverage, reliability, and QoE of access / network resources.

[0062] In some configurations, overall architectural and functional enhancements are required to support Figure 7 Dual 3GPP access for a mobile device 710 supporting selection and / or registration of two 3GPP accesses 720 and 730 is shown. For example, after the mobile device 710 selects an initial PLMN that may have certain access technologies (e.g., TN, NTN) and registers to the first 3GPP access 720 of the PLMN, there must be a feasible mechanism for the mobile device 710 to determine how to select and / or register the second 3GPP access 730.

[0063] In some configurations, the term "3GPP access" or "network access" to a network (e.g., PLMN) may refer to a system (e.g., 5GC, 5GS, EPC, EPS, 6GC, 6GS, etc.), RAT, or other access technology, such as GSM, UTRAN, GSMCOMPACT, EC-GSM-IoT, cdma2000 1xRTT, cdma2000HRPD, E-UTRAN (WB-S1 mode and NB-S1 mode), NG-RAN, Satellite NG-RAN, and Satellite E-UTRAN (WB-S1 mode and NB-S1 mode). In some configurations, a PLMN may support more than one access technology.

[0064] The first information is used to select a second network access and / or a second 3GPP access after the mobile device / mobile station / bidirectional device has registered with a PLMN that may have some 3GPP access. In some configurations, the first information is received by the mobile device / mobile station / bidirectional device during a registration process for the first network access. The first information may include PLMN information with corresponding or some or specific 3GPP access information to the mobile device / mobile station / bidirectional device.

[0065] Figure 8 8 is a schematic diagram 800 showing an example of first information. Specifically, the example first information 800 is a whitelist including multiple one-way (i.e., unidirectional) elements. For example, Figure 8As shown, the first element includes an indication 810 of the first network (PLMN ID 1), an indication 820 of a possible second 3GPP access (RAT 1), and an indication 830 of a list of second networks (PLMN ID 11, PLMN ID 12, SNPN ID 11); the last element includes an indication 840 of the first network (PLMN ID 12), an indication 850 of a possible second 3GPP access (RAT 3), and an indication 860 of the second network (PLMN ID 123). According to the first element, when the mobile device is registered to the first 3GPP access of PLMN ID 1 as the first PLMN (i.e., the first network indicated by indication 810), the mobile device can select and register to RAT 1 of the second PLMN / SNPN (i.e., the second 3GPP access indicated by indication 820), for example, PLMN ID 11, PLMN ID 12, or SNPN ID 11 (i.e., the second network indicated by indication 830). On the other hand, according to the last element, when the mobile device is registered with a first 3GPP access with a different PLMN ID 12 as the first PLMN (i.e., the first network indicated by indication 840), the mobile device can select and register with RAT 3 (i.e., the second 3GPP access indicated by indication 850) with a PLMN ID 123 as the second PLMN (i.e., the second network indicated by indication 860). Since each element in the first information 800 is unidirectional, for the same PLMN 12 that appears in both the first element and the last element (i.e., indications 830 and 840, respectively), as indicated by the first element, PLMN 12 can be used as the second PLMN only when PLMN 1 is the first PLMN. When PLMN 12 is the first PLMN, the last element shows that only PLMN 123 can be used as the second PLMN.

[0066] In some embodiments, the first information may further include additional information related to the second 3GPP access. For example, when the second 3GPP access is associated with a second PLMN, the first information may further include additional information that the mobile device can use to help it search / find the second PLMN. For example, the first information may include information indicating the TAI of each 3GPP access, one or more tracking area identifiers (TAI) of the cell ID, one or more cell IDs, and one or more locations. In some embodiments, the first information may further include additional validity information in the form of one or more allowed time periods, indicating that each 3GPP access is allowed as a second 3GPP access during the indicated allowed time period. Alternatively, the first information may further include additional invalidity information in the form of one or more not allowed time periods, indicating that each 3GPP access is not allowed as a second 3GPP access during the indicated not allowed time period. Specifically, when the first information includes a network ID (e.g., a PLMN ID, a CAG ID, or a SNPN ID), each network ID may be associated with a service (e.g., NSSAI), frequency information (e.g., ARFCN), satellite configuration (e.g., timing, ephemeris, etc.), time validity information, and / or location validity information. Other additional information related to the second network (e.g., a second PLMN / SNPN) that may be included in the first information may include, but is not limited to: a user / UE identifier of the second network (e.g., GUTI or SUCI or SUPI), an equivalent PLMN / SNPN of the second network, a network identifier (NID) as the SNPN of the second network, a TAI list of the second network, network slice selection assistance information (NSSAI) of the second network allowed / rejected / configured, 5GS network function support of the second network, PDU session status of the second network, a service area list of the second network, a (extended) emergency number list of the second network, and a timer value of the second network.

[0067] In some configurations, the first information may also indicate a specific instruction for the mobile device to select or restrict the second 3GPP access. In this case, the first information may indicate information (e.g., a list of RATs indicating the first 3GPP access) such that when the second 3GPP access of the second PLMN is the same as the first 3GPP access of the first PLMN (e.g., the same RAT), the second 3GPP access is not allowed to be used by the mobile device. In this case, the mobile device may select the second 3GPP access of the second PLMN having a different RAT than the first 3GPP access of the first PLMN.

[0068] For example, the first information may be (re / pre)configured or provided by the network, or may be (pre)stored in the NVRAM (ME) or USIM of the mobile device. In some embodiments, the first information may also be updated by the home / subscribed public land mobile network (e.g., the first public land mobile network or another public land mobile network) in a registration process via a non-access stratum (NAS) message, such as a roaming guidance (SoR) mechanism / process, a UE policy management process, or a unified data management (UDM) control plane process.

[0069] Fig. 9 900 is a flowchart illustrating a method (process) for wireless communication of a mobile device. The method can be performed by a mobile device (e.g., mobile device 710). In operation 910, the mobile device registers to a first network access of a first public land mobile network (PLMN). In operation 920, after registering to the first network access, the mobile device determines whether a second network access of the PLMN or a standalone non-public network (SNPN) is allowed to be registered by the mobile device based on first information. In operation 930, in response to determining that the second network access is allowed, the mobile device selects the second network access based on the first information and registers to the second network access.

[0070] In some embodiments, the mobile device registers with the first network access of the first PLMN by: sending a registration request message to the network to register with the first network access of the first PLMN; and receiving a registration response message from the network. In some embodiments, the registration response message includes the first information.

[0071] In some embodiments, the first information is configured or preconfigured by the network. In some embodiments, the first information is stored in the mobile device. In some embodiments, the first information is updated by the first PLMN via a NAS message.

[0072] It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of the blocks in the disclosed process / flowchart is an illustration of an exemplary method. It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of the blocks in the process / flowchart may be rearranged based on design preferences. In addition, some blocks may be combined or omitted. The accompanying method claims present the elements of the various blocks in an example order and are not intended to be limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0073] The foregoing description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be applied to other aspects. Therefore, the claims are not intended to be limited to the various aspects shown herein, but should be given a full scope consistent with the claims text, wherein unless explicitly stated, the reference to the elements in the singular form is not intended to represent "one and only one", but to represent "one or more". The word "exemplary" is used herein to represent "used as an example, instance or illustration". Any aspect described as "exemplary" herein is not necessarily interpreted as being preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Unless otherwise explicitly stated, the term "some" refers to one or more. Combinations such as "at least one of A, B or C", "one or more of A, B or C", "at least one of A, B and C", "one or more of A, B and C" and "A, B, C or any combination thereof" include any combination of A, B and / or C, and may include multiple A, multiple B or multiple C. Specifically, phrases such as "at least one of A, B, or C," "one or more of A, B, or C," "at least one of A, B and C," "one or more of A, B, and C," and "A, B, C, or any combination thereof" may be only A, only B, only C, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C, wherein any such combination may include one or more members of A, B, or C. All structural and functional equivalents of the elements throughout the various aspects of the description of the present invention that are known or will later be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be covered by the claims. In addition, regardless of whether such disclosure is expressly recited in the claims, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public. The terms "module," "mechanism," "element," "device," and the like may not replace the term "device." Therefore, unless a claim element is expressly recited using the phrase "device for...", no claim element should be interpreted as a device plus function.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication of a mobile device, comprising: registering with a first network access of a first public land mobile network; After registering with the first network access, determining based on the first information whether a second network access of a public land mobile network or an independent non-public network is allowed for the mobile device to register with; as well as In response to determining that the second network access is allowed, the second network access is selected based on the first information, and the second network access is registered.

2. The method for wireless communication of a mobile device according to claim 1, wherein: The second network access is a network access of the first public land mobile network, or a network access of a second public land mobile network different from the first public land mobile network or the independent non-public network.

3. The method for wireless communication of a mobile device according to claim 1, wherein: The first information includes: One or more network identifiers; and One or more radio access technologies.

4. The method for wireless communication of a mobile device according to claim 3, wherein: The first information further includes: one or more tracking area identifiers; one or more cell identities; and One or more locations.

5. The method for wireless communication of a mobile device according to claim 3, wherein: The first information further includes: one or more permitted time periods, or One or more time periods are not allowed.

6. The method for wireless communication of a mobile device according to claim 1, wherein: The first network access registered to the first public land mobile network includes: sending a registration request message to register with the first network access of the first public land mobile network; and Receive a registration response message.

7. The method for wireless communication of a mobile device according to claim 6, wherein: The registration response message includes the first information.

8. The method for wireless communication of a mobile device according to claim 1, wherein: The first information is configured or preconfigured by the first public land mobile network.

9. The method for wireless communication of a mobile device according to claim 1, wherein: The first information is stored in the mobile device.

10. The method for wireless communication of a mobile device according to claim 1, wherein: The first information is updated by the first public land mobile network through a non-access layer message.

11. A device for wireless communication, the device being a mobile device, comprising: Memory; as well as At least one processor coupled to the memory, and the at least one processor is configured to: registering with a first network access of a first public land mobile network; After registering with the first network access, determining based on the first information whether a second network access of a public land mobile network or an independent non-public network is allowed for the mobile device to register with; as well as In response to determining that the second network access is allowed, the second network access is selected based on the first information, and the second network access is registered.

12. The apparatus for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: The second network access is a network access of the first public land mobile network, or a network access of a second public land mobile network different from the first public land mobile network, or the independent non-public network.

13. The apparatus for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: The first information includes: One or more network identifiers; and One or more radio access technologies.

14. The apparatus for wireless communication according to claim 13, wherein: The first information further includes: one or more tracking area identifiers; one or more cell identities; and One or more locations.

15. The apparatus for wireless communication according to claim 13, wherein: The first information further includes: one or more permitted time periods, or One or more time periods are not allowed.

16. The apparatus for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: The first network access registered to the first public land mobile network includes: sending a registration request message to register with the first network access of the first public land mobile network; and Receive a registration response message.

17. The apparatus for wireless communication according to claim 16, wherein: The registration response message includes the first information.

18. The apparatus for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: The first information is configured or preconfigured by the first public land mobile network.

19. The apparatus for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: The first information is stored in the mobile device.

20. The apparatus for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: The first information is updated by the first public land mobile network through a non-access layer message.

21. A computer readable medium for wireless communication of a mobile device, storing a program, wherein when executed, the program causes the mobile device to perform the following operations: registering with a first network access of a first public land mobile network; After registering with the first network access, determining based on the first information whether a second network access of a public land mobile network or an independent non-public network is allowed for the mobile device to register with; and In response to determining that the second network access is allowed, the second network access is selected based on the first information, and the second network access is registered.

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